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Michelle Khare accepted the challenge to get on the Emmy ballot, and now, it’s mission accomplished.
YouTube creator Michelle Khare’s popular series “Challenge Accepted” has officially joined the ranks of television’s top honors, successfully petitioning the Television Academy to appear on the ballot for the Primetime Emmy Awards in the outstanding hosted nonfiction series category.
The Television Academy panel notified Khare and her team Thursday that their petition to move the series from the Daytime Emmys to the Primetime Emmys was successful, Variety has learned exclusively. Originally submitted to the Daytime Emmys, “Challenge Accepted” now joins other internet-born series like Sean Evans’ “Hot Ones,” which transitioned to the Primetime category for outstanding talk series in 2024, and “Good Mythical Morning,” which successfully petitioned into the outstanding short form comedy, drama or variety series category.
“Challenge Accepted,” created and led by Khare, features the former professional cyclist and BuzzFeed personality taking on intense physical and mental challenges — from military boot camp to elite firefighter training. Khare serves as writer, producer, director and host, often dedicating up to a year of planning and preparation for a single episode.
The series debuted its first feature-length episode, “Challenge Accepted: 90 Day Black Belt,” at the Montclair Film Festival last year to critical acclaim. That episode will serve as her official Emmy submission for consideration by voting members. Filmed in 4K and produced with high cinematic quality, Khare’s work blurs the line between traditional television and digital content, proving that platforms like YouTube can deliver Emmy-caliber storytelling.
The Primetime Emmys’ acceptance of Khare’s petition signals a broader shift in the TV landscape, as digital creators continue to challenge traditional definitions of what constitutes television. Khare joins a growing number of digital-first storytellers reshaping the prestige TV conversation, one challenge at a time.
Nomination voting runs from June 12 to June 23, with official nominations set to be announced July 15.
English (US) ·